Children & Women Vitamin D deficiency linked to high odds of having C-section
By David Liu Ph.D.
Dec 23, 2008 - 11:42:42 AM
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Tuesday Dec 23, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- Vitamin D
deficiency during pregnancy increases risk of having a Caesarean delivery,
according to a new study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology
& Metabolism.
The study led by Mickael Holick, a vitamin D authority,
at Boston University and colleagues showed
that women who had less than 37.5 nmol of 25-hydroxyvitamin D per liter of
blood had a 28 percent chance to have C-section compared to 14 percent for
women with more than 37.5 nmol/L.
The 2-year study involved 253 women and 17 percent of
them experienced a Caesarean section.
Dr. Holick was cited by healthday.com as noting that
previous studies have associated vitamin D deficiency with proximal muscle weakness
and suboptimal muscle performance and strength, which may be the reason why
more vitamin D deficient pregnant women end up having a C-section than those
who have higher levels of the vitamin.
Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy has been linked
with adverse effects on the fetus.
Vitamin D has been found important in the brain development and its role
starts in the early weeks of pregnancy.
Vitamin D expert Dr. John Cannell, executive director of
vitamin D Council suggested that pregnant women should expose themselves to the
sun daily whenever possible to get enough vitamin D and when impossible take 5,000
IU of vitamin D3 in the form of supplements daily.
But he suggested that cod liver oil is not a good source
of vitamin D because it contains little vitamin D and high levels of vitamin A.